BEAUMONT, Texas – The Lamar University Cardinals, winners of seven straight games, take a break from Southland Conference play to host the UTSA Roadrunners in a non-league game at 5 p.m. Tuesday at the LU Softball Complex.
 
The Cardinals (13-13 overall) are tied for first place in the conference with McNeese at 6-0. LU wrapped up a three-game conference sweep of visiting Houston Baptist with a 10-2 win on Saturday.
 
UTSA (11-17) is 2-4 in Conference USA. The Roadrunners took two of three games from visiting UAB over the weekend.
 
Tuesday will be the second meeting between the teams this season. UTSA was a 6-0 winner over LU on Feb. 17 at the Getterman Classic hosted by Baylor University.
 
"We're looking for a little redemption on Tuesday," LU coach Holly Bruder said. "We did not perform well in that game. UTSA is a team that can hit. They can score a lot of runs, but they can also give up a lot of runs. Obviously, playing them at home helps."
 
The Cardinals are 9-2 at home this season and 37-10 all-time at the LU Softball Complex since the venue opened in 2015. However, two of those losses were to UTSA in the 2015 season. Overall, UTSA holds a 7-2 lead in the all-time series, having won seven straight. LU's two wins over the Roadrunners came on Feb. 9, 2013, as the Cardinals swept a doubleheader at Ford Park in the first games LU played after reviving the program.
 
LU center fielder Brittany Rodriguez leads the Southland Conference with a .440 batting average. Rodriguez was named as the SLC Player of the Week by College Sports Madness after hitting .556 against Houston Baptist with a double and a triple in nine at-bats. Rodriguez scored two runs and drove in five while collecting three walks along the way.
 
Catcher Brynn Baca is batting .364 this season and enters Tuesday's game having reached base in 18 straight games, the ninth-longest streak in LU history. Right fielder Corina Thornton is hitting .412 with nine RBIs this season. Thornton hit .750 (6-for-8) against HBU over the weekend.
 
Right-hander Ciara Luna (3-7, 3.34) is expected to start for the Cardinals.
 
UTSA has a .303 team batting average, 11 points better than LU's .292 batting average. Lindsey Stewart leads the Roadrunners with a .400 batting average. Celeste Loughman is hitting .366, while Rylee Rodriguez has a .344 batting average with seven home runs and 28 RBIs.
 
Right-handers Lizzy Fox (8-11, 3.97) and Nicole Merrill (3-5, 4.37) have seen the bulk of the pitching duty for the Roadrunners, who have a team ERA of 4.57, as compared to LU's 3.75.
 
PROMOTIONS: There will be a 30-minute clinic for youth softball players 12 and younger after the game. The clinic is included with the price of admission. All youngsters are asked to provide their own helmet, bat and glove. "It's a win-win situation for everybody," Bruder said of the clinic. Our players love working with the young softball players and the youngsters get a chance to be on our game field."
 
UP NEXT: The Cardinals travel to Stephen F. Austin for a three-game Southland Conference series. The Cardinals and Ladyjacks are slated to play a single game at 3 p.m. Friday and a doubleheader at 1 p.m. Saturday. LU's next home game is a non-conference doubleheader vs. Alcorn State at noon March 29.
 
DON'T FENCE ME IN: Hitters have had trouble clearing the walls at the LU Softball Complex since it opened. In 47 LU games at the complex, there have been just 19 home runs, 10 by the Cardinals, nine by the opposition. In LU's two seasons at Ford Park, there were 83 home runs in 39 games, 49 by the Cardinals and 34 by the opponents.
 
TICKETS: For tickets for all LU home games, call 409-880-1715, or CLICK HERE. Tickets are also available at the LU ticket office, located in the Montagne Center, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays. Tickets will be available at the ticket window at the LU Softball Complex starting one hour prior to first pitch.